"Good food, great atmosphere"   My Rating
36 flamekat	Posted on: Sunday, September 20, 2009
	Review: I wrote a so-so review before, but have since revisited twice. At the time of our first visit, the restaurant was still rather new. They were working on new labels and menus when we were eating. The atmosphere is very nice and homey here. It seems like a very good place to enjoy a tea or coffee. The food was rather good the first time, but not amazing. The ginger scones we had for dessert were dense and not very tasty. I wouldn't order them again. It was the only vegan dessert available. Everything else, including the tofu cheesecake, contained dairy. The food has improved drastically. I have since tried a tasty rice "lasagna" that's really more of a baked dish with coconut milk and veggies. It came with salad and was a good-sized plate. My husband likes the green tea soba noodles. The miso soup is also good. Our dinner companions were divided on the curries but the tofu sandwich gets good reviews. The onigiri is also very good. The white wine is a very nice Italian. It went perfectly with our food. The owner said she kept the wine from when it used to be an Italian restaurant as when she looked into getting organic wine, it was too expensive. There are now more vegan desserts. I spoke to the owner and she said she was working on changing all of them to vegan and on my last visit, they all were. We've tried the banana sesame bread pudding (great!) and the cornbread with figs. The cornbread was more of a sweet polenta. Nice and different. There are also some delicious looking crumbles and a chocolate tofu cheesecake (vegan now), that I have yet to try. I spoke to the chef and he said they are working on developing more vegan desserts, so I expect they will only get better. My main complaint the first visit was with our waiter, but he doesn't appear to work there anymore, so I will remove that part of my review. The owner served us on our second visit and a new waitress on our last and we had a great experience. The owner is super friendly and very accommodating even when more friends showed up and we had to move tables (twice). The only complaint I have is that service is very slow, even for things that you wouldn't expect (like warming up puddings, etc.). Don't come here expecting a quick bite to eat. This is more of a place you go when you want to spend a good chunk of time with friends or a date. Order your wine and enjoy some conversation or play with the kitten while waiting for your food. We will definitely go to Annamaya more often now.   Pros: tasty, healthy food * nice atmosphere and non-smoking * vegan desserts Cons: slow service * *
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"Good Good Healthy Food"   My Rating
1 Danny	Posted on: Wednesday, August 12, 2009
	Review: This place had some not only healthy, but tasty meals. I think its the only NON-Chinese Vegetarian Cuisine in Shanghai. Their meals are based on a macrobiotic diet and you can even ask them what your looking for if you'd like to hear their recommendations (if your sick, want something that really fills you, gives you energy, etc). I heard some stories about the small portions so I was worried about that the first time I went there since I'm a big guy. I told them I eat alot and they took care of me from there. Anyone living in the area and wants a positive change in their diet, I DEFINITELY RECOMMEND you guys to set up a eating schedule their and talk to the owner! I think they deliver near by too...?.. Its so easy to eat like crap here, even in the vegetarian places, with all the MSG and oil they use in China..on my checkup the Doc suddenly told me that I had to really improve my diet! (and I honestly thought I was eating ok!). Anyways, I'm now a regular here on the macrobiotic diet, and I will speak from my own feelings. After a week, I feel like I have more energy, need less sleep, and happier, its weird haha. This place is awesome and I'm truly happy I have the privileged to work and live next to it!   Pros: Good Food! * Great Environment and Freindly Staff * Month Programs which turns out cheaper Cons: Can't do programs if your far I guess * *
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"Well worth a visit"   My Rating
1 jzzzzzzz	Posted on: Wednesday, June 03, 2009
	Review: A beautiful space with very friendly staff. 'Japanese' is a little misleading. The owner is Japanese but the menu is more international. It's a nice change from the standard mock-meat veggie restaurants in China. Portions a little small but I'll definitely be back.   Pros: Healthy * Very friendly * Cons: Smallish portions * *
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"Quiet place to relax and eat."   My Rating
2 wanderer	Posted on: Saturday, May 30, 2009
	Review: I spoke to the chef during my visit, and she confirmed that no eggs/dairy products are used in anything except for some of the desserts. I was disappointed to find that the tofu cheesecake's crust ingredients were unknown. Otherwise, the food was delicious, but portions are small. Lunch set RMB50, dinner set RMB70 includes salad or rice/ soup / and main dish. Cakes RMB30, tea RMB25, juices RMB35.   Pros: healthy cuisine * friendly staff * excellent food Cons: small portions * *
1 of 1 visitors found the above review beneficial  Responses(1) | Contact Member | Was this review useful?  • It doesn't matter about the crust -- the tofu cheesecake filling itself is not vegan. It contains cheese which I was told was essential for the creamy texture. To be fair, they don't have it labeled as vegan. The only vegan dessert when I was there was a very dense scone.. response by flamekat - report abuse -

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